Good morning.
As a 15-year-old waitress at Ponderosa, I dreaded the all-you-can-eat fish fry. Combined with cheap beer, it made our no-tipping family restaurant a magnet for some rowdy crowds on a Friday night. You try stopping a bunch of high school football players from flinging fish into each other’s mouths. Our manager, Vince, thought it was hilarious. In fact, he played on one of the teams.
So I wasn’t surprised to learn about the financial carnage induced by Red Lobster’s “endless shrimp” promotion. But I’m also heartened to hear its new CEO Damola Adamolekun, 35, cite the stress on servers as one reason to end this culinary chaos. You’re a better leader than Vince was, sir.
What makes someone productive and happy at work varies by personality and profession. What we do know, says Indeed CEO Chris Hyams, is that AI will change every job. Check out my recent conversation with him as part of Deloitte’s Next Generation CEO program. (Deloitte sponsors this newsletter.) I also met with two CEOs this week who have very different views on the question of remote vs. in-person work.
California-based Bitwarden CEO Michael Crandell notes that the password management company has always been fully remote. “It’s actually more difficult to run a hybrid model than it is to be all in-person or all remote,” he told me over video call, arguing remote collaboration is better for flow. “It takes you 15 minutes to get your thoughts assembled and you’re working on something, and somebody knocks and says, ‘Hey, how about a burger for lunch?’ And you’re ripped out of that state and now you need another 15 minutes.”
Pure Storage CEO Charlie Giancarlo, who came to visit me in-person, has a different view. “Basically, I want us all back in the office,” says Giancarlo. “As I explained to people, we’re a team sport. If you play individual sports, you can practice all by yourself. But things get missed when people are not in the office. Batons are dropped. It’s not about balance. It’s about the optimal way to build your career.”
I tend to agree and am looking forward to some team karaoke or ax-throwing after we all get through an event-packed few weeks that start on Monday with the Fortune COO Summit and then move to the Fortune Impact Initiative, the Fortune Most Powerful Women gathering, a Fortune CEO Forum in London, and finally our flagship Fortune Global Forum in November. And when the boss comes along for some all-you-can-eat bites, odds are high that no food will fly.
More news below.
Diane Brady
diane.brady@fortune.com
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TOP NEWS
Top CEO worries
CEOs are keeping a close eye on the Middle East as a conflict between Israel and Iran grows, but the cofounders of consulting company Prism don't think there's reason for panic yet. Instead, they think executives should refocus on domestic issues like the Trump-proposed tariffs. Fortune
U.S. debt, mapped
Government debt is top of mind for voters heading into the November election, and in the U.S. that debt has doubled in the past 10 years. Fortune's Nicolas Rapp charts how U.S. debt compares to that of other countries. Fortune
Nvidia's 'insane' demand
Nvidia shares were up over 3% on Thursday after CEO Jensen Huang emphasized the "insane" demand for the chipmaker's new Blackwell chips. The company also announced a partnership with professional services firm Accenture this week to promote AI adoption. Fortune
AROUND THE WATERCOOLER
Elon Musk set to face SEC investigators after skipping last meeting by Paolo Confino
Big AI thins out the competition as startups quit the race to build large language models by Sage Lazzaro
QVC gets into the live sports business—with pro pickleball by Chris Morris
Rich Americans prefer Harris over Trump—but want a second passport no matter who wins by Alicia Adamczyk
Mercedes-Benz CEO says auto market is in a ‘Darwinian battle’ as German carmakers flounder by Ryan Hogg
This edition of CEO Daily was curated by Joey Abrams.
